Chambliss, K.

(2012) Teachers oral proficiency in the target language: Research on

the role in language teaching and learning. Foreign Language Annals, 45, S141-S158

Teachers Oral Proficiency in Target Language Research on its Role in

Language Teaching and Learning
Foreign Language teaching has come under much scrutiny because studies have shown that
not all Foreign Language teacher candidates have attained an Advance Low Proficiency level on the
ACTFL Proficiency Guidelines. In order for a foreign language teacher to be effective and promote
learning the Target language to her students, she (or he) must be able to speak the language that she
is teaching. Not every state has requirements as to what constitutes the level of proficiency that the
teacher must acquire, but many state licensing authorities do follow a guideline and do require that a
beginner teacher establish the level of Advanced Low on the ACTFL Proficiency Guidelines as the
minimum proficiency standard for new teachers (Chambless, 2012, p. S142). The Oral Proficiency
Interview (OPI) is the tool used to assess a speakers oral proficiency level and the ACTFL/NCATE
standards provide a framework for what Foreign Language teacher candidates should be able to do
upon graduation and once they enter the foreign language profession.
Some research has been done that shows that teaching candidates tend to rise to the level of
proficiency that is expected of them. In other words, if a state requires a foreign language candidate
to have a minimum of Advanced Low in order to gain teaching certification, she will usually attain
that proficiency level. Nevertheless only 21 states are using official ACTFL testing in FL for some
component of their teacher certification process (Chambless, 2012, S150). And as studies also show,
more exposure to the Target Language is one of the best ways for a teacher candidate to achieve
Advanced Low proficiency. The best way to get that exposure is to study abroad. While study
abroad is not the only contributing factor to Target Language acquisition, it can certainly help. In

addition to studying abroad, according to this article, foreign language teacher candidates should also
use the target language abundantly outside of the classroom. And those of us that are already
teaching a foreign language should use that language in the classroom 90% of the time.
I believe that the article touches on a very important topic. I think that not only is oral
proficiency an absolute must-have, but also the teachers pronunciation of the foreign language
needs to be as addressed and evaluated before teachers begin teaching. Once you learn something,
whether it is correct or incorrect, it is very hard to unlearn.